Character Towns: Strips vs. Corridors

Commercial strips such as SR 436, US 441, and Park Avenue come up in regular conversation, and certainly on social media. The chatter discusses marginal businesses, uninviting restaurants, vacant and poorly-maintained buildings, a wide array of signs, excessive driveway cuts, and disorganized parking lots with too few trees.

These commercial strips are generally ugly to view, dangerous to drive through, and often a poor contributor to a city’s economic and employment bases. They are unproductive economic assets for owners and city alike. We all intuitively know this and want better.

District 2 Orange County Commissioner Christine Moore

The problem of blighted commercial strips has plagued most of America since the decline of city main streets. The resource I’m using to identify this blight and find solutions is Bill Kercher’s book, entitled Character Towns. Mr. Kercher has compiled a list of resources from national planners and uses examples of revitalized areas throughout Central Florida. We know areas that have been doing the hard work to improve such as Winter Garden, Kissimmee, Sanford, Ocoee, and others.

This article will be the first of a two-part series. We must first dissect what is it that our eyes are simply telling us isn’t good. Kercher characterized the common woes of blighted commercial strips as the following:

1. Low or no development standards and design guidelines
2. Little access control, interconnected parking areas, or frontage roads
3. No visible interest in aesthetics through sign control, landscaping, or site planning.
4. No organization like a merchants’ association or property owners’ association to foster better ideas

Commercial corridors foretell the character of a town. Well-organized, nicely maintained, and occupied buildings along a highway, with more than an occasional tree, raise a visitor’s expectations about what will be found in the city. 

Highway corridors are an essential element of every city - the only question is whether they are attractive and economically productive. Corridors are the connective tissue which accommodate regional traffic and connect the city’s neighborhoods. So, let’s envision entries into our towns which give the appearance of a pleasant and prosperous community. These gateways are the one opportunity to create a first and lasting impression. 

A community-wide recognition that a business “district” exists is one of the first steps to creating appealing entranceways.

1. Identifiable borders, gateways, and edges should be defined
2. A generally accepted name to identify the area
3. A consensus among stakeholders that resources & activities require some level of organization

The City of Orlando has many districts – Packing, SoDo, Milk, etc. Apopka is getting so large it is tough to just label everything “Apopka”. I believe city leaders and citizens should be involved in determining this. I always say my unincorporated areas keep me busy enough. Nevertheless, I believe I must grow my current vision in unincorporated areas to include additional visioning in creating commercial strips.

I hope you will join me. I have area Leader’s Groups in Southern Apopka, Northern Apopka, and Wekiwa Springs. Why don’t you join me in this valuable effort? Call Kathy at 407/836-5850, or email District2@ocfl.net.